Location: Palo Alto, Calif. Company: Gachina Landscape Management A well-planned irrigation system is never more important than during a drought. With water conservation in mind, Gachina Landscape Management renovated Oak Creek Apartments’ irrigation system. It was California’s worst drought in decades, but the Gachina team helped Oak Creek take advantage of a $50,000 rebate from the Santa Clara Valley Water... read more
California’s five-year drought, which has effects as diverse as an increase in devastating wildfires and the normalization of brown lawns, could become the region’s “new normal,” according to researchers. The study, published in Nature.com journal Scientific Reports, looked at periods over the past 10,000 during which natural climatic forces—like sun spots, a slight change in earth’s orbit or a decrease in volcanic activity—warmed the region through a... read more
The Irrigation Association released its Drought Summit Report late last year. We break it down here. IA’s tips for the landscaping industry: Adopt a model irrigation ordinance at the local level to increase irrigation efficiencies in newly installed commercial and residential landscape irrigation systems. Authorize the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s WaterSense program and incentivize the use of WaterSense-labeled technologies and... read more
TurfMutt, an environmental stewardship and education program, added new classroom materials for grades K to 5. In conjunction with Scholastic, TurfMutt created a digital storybook, titled “The West Coast Mission,” an online climate change game and lesson plans for teachers. The program helps students learn about science and the environment from the perspective of the backyard, community and personal green... read more
A perspective on the California drought and landscape water use. Landscape water use in California accounts for 9 percent of the total statewide water use. Thus, if we never watered another home or public landscape, park, sports field or golf course in California, the state would save 9 percent of its average total water consumption. This does not seem like... read more
The Davey Tree Expert Co. partnered with California ReLeaf, Save Our Water and a coalition of urban forest and other organizations to raise awareness on the importance of proper tree care during the California drought. With potentially millions of urban trees at risk, according to the company, the “Save Our Water and Our Trees!” partnership is an attempt to do... read more
